Method for recovering and purifying radium compounds



Sept; i5; 925.; f

v ia :citizen of th United States, ;residing at Denver, in the city and..-'county of Denver,

' and Stat e of ColoradoQhave invented 'cer i .tain new and useful Improvements ?injMeth Compounds; and I} do declare thei'fifollowing.

' the invention, such as will enable others make and use thesame, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference ,marked' thereon, which form a part of this application; V I This invention relates to improvements-in methods for recovering and purifying ra -,7 *diun compoundsf p a This-inv'ention relates to a processby :means of Which radium values held in suspension in an aqueous mixture canlbe' 7 H brought into solution and treatedgso as to "obtain from them a substantiallyipureraldium -barium sulphate. V

, V The ore with or iwithout previously'having'been concentrated isitreated with water I f and an excess of alkali-metal oarbonate,ksuoh I as sodium or potassium carbonate, and the j whole is then; heated to, or, near to; the boilv I point-for a short time. This puts" the radium into solution; I

a ,The alkali-metal carbonate solutioncar- 'rying the dissolved radium'is (ifthi'sis V necessary) :fi'rst separated from the heavier v suspendedmatter either by filtration orqdecantatio'nl The suspended colloidal alumina,

ahi'gh content of'occluded radium. a a

' vThe solution is. now made faintly acid by .Ithelcarbon dioxide isthe'n. expelled either by "standing for a time or by boiling, preferably akthejla'tter.

' .A soluble barium salt such as barium [chloride or barium nitrate is now added 3 whereby-E barium sulphateis, formed a The resultant, suspensions of barium sulphate "that each particle of colloidal material is 1 scrubbed many times by particles of barium sulphate whereby allof the occluded radium is transferred to. the barium sulphatem'The,

.lradiu inthat is not occlud Winib precipii "tated 1 with the barium sulphate when the soluble barium salt is added. 'The solution 'is 'now allowed to "stand and settle, After I vmoproaf gad etstfianjruamm 1mm ooiurouuns 5' i aaaamed aprii 2,4, 1925.,saa1-No. 25,718.

I V I diumLbar-iumsulphatea The resultant solw. fod's forRecoveringand Purifying 'Badiuin r y n I fte'ri :Tothisfiltrate,'water is' then addedin to beaif-ull, clear, and exact description of" i skilled in the m to whi hf c p to high as 100 to 1 or other way or itmay be further diluted With a i tc. must not be removed'as it carries 1 th' ddition theretoxof'sul hu i i p I l l g Water until.rad1umjbar1um sulphate is repreci'pitate'd i v T "from an alkali-metal carbonate solution andcolloidsland radium) are agitated so- I a g .1 settling" t p p a e of lame-ad i a Be'it; known that I, GEORGE OQVvILLI-AM S,

etc: is ifiltered fofi a'nd washed; 7.

Th s.flpreoipitateis' then t eatedwith con- 1*: centratedsulphuric:acid to' dissolve; the ra'abarium sulphates, colloidali:alumi'nafsili'ca',

tion is filtered to remove the su'spendedmat} sufficient quantity i to cause Lthe -radium 65. I;

barium sulphate to re-precipitataafter which j i the precipitate is removed by filtration.

VThis precipitate of radium-barium sulphate l i This initial precipitateof barium sulphate contains most of theradium of the original] precipitate and if the addition of the water 7 it TI is properly gauged the precipitate will be hlghl'y; concentrated. A concentration fas: j-'-' greater may be arrived 80 at by 'this one step. I Y

The filtrate from the last step may be concentrated by evaporation'or treatedin any 1 i water to eliminate the barium sulphateg .1: which, may be reconverted into chloride;

after which the solutionfmay be evaporate to recover the concentrated acid.

Having now described my invention -what' a I claim as'new is; a in Y '90 1.- The method of precipitating radium, T r

froman alkali-metal carbonate solution which consists in-a'cidifying the solution by a y the use of sulphuric acid, adding a solublc barium Salt, dissolvingfthe precipitate 'in 9 concentrated sulphuric acid; filtering and J 2. The method of precipitating radium which consists in:

(1) Adding sufiicientlsulplmric acid to make the solution slightly aold." a V Expelling the carbonate as by boil-'3 j a a 105 (3);A dding a soluble barium salt.

(5),,fFilteringto remove the radium'bearing particles.

' (6)-'Adding concentrated sulphuric acid* 0 to the precipltate so as to. dissolve theradium barium sulphate.

:22 V Y I 1,554,056

(7) Filtering and j V (8) Adding 'sufiicient Water to 'reprecipitate.

3. The method of treating radium ores so as to separate the radium values Which consists in:

(1) Treating an aqueous suspension of ore With an excess of an alkali-metal carbonate.

(2) Heating the mixture whereby the radium is dissolved.

(3) Adding sulphuric acid in sufficient quantity to make the solution slightly acid. (4 Boiling to expel the carbonate. V (5) Adding a soluble barium salt Whereby a barium sulphate is formed.

(6) Subjecting the mixtureto agitation. (7) Filtering.

(8) Dissolving the filtrate in concentrated sulphuric acid.

r (9). Filtering to remove impurities, and

(10) Adding Water to the filter solution whereby a reprecipitatio'n of radium barium sulphate is obtained. 7 i

4. A method of precipitating radium from an alkali-metal carbonate solution, said method consisting in acidifying the solution, by the use of sulphuric acid, adding a soluble barium salt, dissolving the precipitate in concentrated sulphuric acid, filtering the resultant solution to remove the suspended matter and finally adding Water care-fully or gradually until incipient precipitation results. i

,In testimony whereof I afiix my signature. GEORGE O. VILLIAMS. 

